


Invisible

by punkbitchcraft



Category: Beetlejuice (1988), Beetlejuice (TV 1989), Beetlejuice - All Media Types, Beetlejuice musical - Fandom
Genre: Adulthood, Age Difference, Aged-Up Character(s), Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, College, Cutting, Depression, Drug Addiction, Drug Use, Drunk Sex, Drunken Confessions, F/M, Older Man/Younger Woman, Past Character Death, Self-Harm, Suicide, Suicide Attempt, Swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-21
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2020-10-25 03:53:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20717657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/punkbitchcraft/pseuds/punkbitchcraft
Summary: Lydia is fresh out of college and struggling to enter adulthood. She reunites with her ghost friends and parents after living in a college dorm for the past few years.





	1. Home Sweet Home

Lydia watched the raindrops slide down the taxi’s window with a bored expression. Next to her was a backpack full of necessities, along with the rest of her belongings in the trunk. She didn’t feel up to conversing with her taxi driver, resulting in a silent ride. Just the way she liked it. Her right hand was raised to her face, desperately trying to rub the sleep from her eyes. No amount of makeup could hide how distraught and exhausted she was deep down. Lydia was completely clueless when it came down to steering her life in a positive direction. It was so easy to push the blame for everything onto the death of her mother or one of her traumatic life experiences. But things were different now. She was an adult and not a reckless teenager anymore. Excuses were pointless. 

“Is this it?” Lydia was pulled out of her thoughts by her taxi driver prompting her.

“Huh? Oh, yeah. This is the place.” She said.

She looked up at the large white house, her eyes quickly lingering towards the attic’s window. Sadly, Adam and Barbra weren’t there waiting for her arrival. Maybe they were really busy or just forgot entirely. It didn’t bother her too much and she quickly moved on. She got out of the taxi after paying and took her few bags of belongings along with her. The rain that was slowly soaking her all-black clothes didn’t give her as much stress as the crushing pressure to search for employment. It sounded easier in her head, but the demand for a photojournalist wasn’t very high. Now it was inevitable for her to spend the rest of her days photographing weddings. 

“Lydia!” Charles and Delia Deetz cheered at the sight of their daughter.

Both of her parents took all of her bags from her arms and hugged her. They lead her inside the house and returned her bags to her childhood bedroom.  
“It’s great to have you back, pumpkin. Don’t stress too much about getting a job so soon, you deserve a break.” Charles assured her.

It felt relieving that he wasn’t going to be pressuring her into getting a job anytime soon. Relaxation was going to be her top priority from now on. Self-care was always at the bottom of her to-do list in college. It was as if she never had enough time for herself. 

“Thanks, Dad.” She grinned.

Lydia made small talk with her dad for a few minutes and eventually slipped away to check the attic for the Maitlands. Slowly creaking the door open, she scanned the room for them. 

“Adam? Barbra?” She called.

“Lydia!” Barbra said, rushing over to her. 

The ghost wrapped her arms around her, hugging her. Adam could be spotted at his model of the town, carefully rearranging things.

“Hey, Adam, put down your toys and come say hi.” Barbra teased.

“Coming, coming.” Adam walked over and gave Lydia a quick hug.

Adam and Barbra were the parental figures in Lydia’s life, more so than her parents. Charles was always distracted by his real estate business. Delia and Lydia never had the strongest relationship, to begin with. She never adjusted to the idea of replacing her mom. The wound of her mother dying was still fresh when they had wedded. It stunned Lydia that her dad could move on after losing her mother. Charles did avoid dating for about a year or two, but when Lydia was fifteen, he had begun dating Delia, proposed, wedded and moved into their current house. All of which had happened in under one year. 

“I’m so glad to be back at home, I missed you guys.” Lydia said.

She was both telling the truth and lying. She was beyond pleased to be out of college and with her friends, but her parents were only a reminder that Emily was no longer with her. In her mind, her mother's death was merely a fever dream and everything was the way it should’ve been. Perfect.

“I’m going to go say hi to BJ, I haven’t talked to him in forever.” She said.

“You visited us just a few weeks ago.” Adam reminded.

“I visited _ you _ guys. I completely left him out of the picture. I feel bad.” She sighed.

“He’s got plenty of things to do to occupy himself in the Neitherworld.” Barbra muttered, shaking her head.

It upset her how the Maitlands and Beetlejuice struggled to get along. She could see through their facade. It was just an act to make her happy, but she was unsure why they had kept it up for so long. All Beetlejuice wanted to do was go on adventures and have fun. Barbra and Adam thought he was a bad influence and was taking her away from the valuable time she could’ve spent studying. Those adventures were what kept her going sometimes. It was exhilarating and the real world was boring in comparison.

“But still,” Lydia whined, “I’ll see you guys later.”

Making her way to her bedroom, she pulled the door open and let herself into her room. It smelled slightly stale because it had been uninhabited for years, aside from the occasional times she had visited. Sitting down on her bed, she took in all of her surroundings. This room and the attic were her primary hideouts, but they felt so foreign after neglecting them for so long. What caught her attention the most was her vanity mirror. A smirk twitched on her lips as she got up and approached it. Staring at her reflection, she tried to fix her hair to look presentable. As per usual, her reflection was far too stubborn to mirror her actions. Her reflection angrily crossed her arms and blew a raspberry with her tongue. Lydia quietly giggled, not wanting to attract any attention from her parents. The reflection morphed back into her best friend, Beetlejuice.

“Lyds, you’re so… uh, grown-up now.” He may have been on the other side of the mirror, but she could almost feel his eyes dragging themselves up and down her body. It wasn’t like her outfit was that eye-catching or out of the ordinary. Still the same old black clothes. She was on the modest side and overwhelmingly insecure, so her skin was mostly covered. There wasn’t much she could show off anyways. 

“Thanks, BJ.” She laughed.

“C’mon, babes, let me out so we can hang out, I haven’t been out of this mirror in forever,” Beetlejuice begged.

It was true. Every time she had visited her parents, she was far too busy to spend time with Beetlejuice and the Maitlands. Their interactions were limited to a quick conversation, but it was never enough time to fully catch up.

“Beetlejuice,” Lydia could see the excitement growing in his eyes as she spoke, “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!”

Lightning could be heard from outside, followed by thunder rumbling. Beetlejuice appeared from thin air right in front of her. He gave her a tight hug, spinning her around before carefully putting her down.  
“Alright, let’s start unpacking.” He said, floating over towards her bags that had been scattered around her bedroom floor. 

Her heart sank in her chest as he rummaged through her bag, knowing exactly what contents were concealed inside. “BJ, don’t go through my shit-”

“The fuck is this?” He pulled out a small plastic bag full of Xanax. 

“I told you to not go through my stuff!” She hissed, rushing over to him, trying to pull the bag out of his iron grip.

“What else is in here?” He asked himself, lightly pushing Lydia away from him.

“Condoms? Lyds, you’re still a kid for fuck’s sake!” He threw the bag down, waving the items in her face.

Lydia glared at the ghost. She may be younger, but she certainly wasn't a child anymore. Eventually, she'd be the same age as Beetlejuice when he had died. Regardless, everyone in this house still treated her like she was a kid. Especially Adam and Barbra. They'd always wanted a baby and Lydia was the closest thing they had to a child of their own. 

“Those were for just in case if I needed them. I’m a virgin, I swear. And those pills were prescribed.” Lydia was a horrible liar and was struggling to make up excuses.

“One of those is a lie and we both know it.” He frowned, shaking his head in disbelief. 

“I'm telling you the truth.” She said.

“Babes, I know you’re doing drugs. I don’t even know what to say. I’m supposed to be the bad influence, but here I am, giving you shit for doing drugs. Barbra and Adam are going to be beyond pissed.” He lectured, pacing back and forth nervously.

“But I wasn’t lying about the condoms.” She said.

“You’re twenty-three. How am I supposed to believe that you’re still a virgin? There’s ought to be hundreds of guys out there just dying to be with you.” He said.

It was embarrassing. She had never even thought about messing around in college, she was just too busy. All her free time was dedicated to homework and catching up on sleep. But, Beetlejuice didn't know these things. Beetlejuice worried day and night about Lydia getting into trouble.

“Enough about my non-existent sex life, you can’t tell Barbra or Adam. I’m begging you. You were a kid once, you surely did worse things than me.” She said.

"Of course I did, but this is different." He said.

"How? BJ, just let me live, it's my life!" She growled.

"Barbra and Adam are going to be so mad-"

"Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!" Lydia chanted.

The ghost vanished and reappeared in the mirror. 

"Fuck you!" He yelled, pounding on the mirror with his fists.

Lydia grabbed a blanket off her bed and draped it over the mirror.


	2. Apologies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lydia frees Beetlejuice from the mirror in an attempt to apologize but instead, they end up working through her emotional turmoil she had been bottling up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: Mentions of cutting/self-harm

Lydia flung herself back onto her bed with anger. Warm tears of frustration slid down the sides of her red face, which she quickly rubbed away with her nightgown’s sleeve. She couldn’t believe that her own best friend was so willing to snitch on her. It wasn’t like she was hurting anyone. Just herself. Did it even matter? Did she even matter? Sitting back up, she looked over at the covered mirror. 

_ Am I being overdramatic? _

Beyond overdramatic. She was displeased with how irritable she had become over the years. Surely it was just a part of not being able to cope with her mother’s death. She’d lost all hope and self-love. Her life had revolved around worthless attempts of moving on. 

Rolling over to the side of her bed, she opened the drawer of her nightstand. After rummaging through things, she rediscovered her razor blade. She hadn’t used it for a while as shown by the dried blood clinging to its rusty metal. More tears formed in the corners of her eyes as she began to recall the restless nights she’d cry throughout. The temptation was always there, but she couldn’t go through that again. In a sudden fit of rage, she tossed it across the room. The razor landed on her vanity, reminding her that she had trapped Beetlejuice in the Neitherworld.

She got back up on her feet and walked over to the mirror, pulling the blanket she had draped over it down. She discarded it onto the floor behind her. Beetlejuice was on the other side of the reflection, lying on his bed in his room in the Neitherworld. Gently tapping the mirror, she tried to judge whether he was awake or not. The idea of disrupting him made her feel a bit guilty. For one, he looked so peaceful. Ghosts didn’t need sleep, but Beetlejuice still enjoyed it.

“Beetlejuice.” She said in a whisper. It was fairly late into the night and her parents were sound asleep and Lydia wasn’t interested in getting yelled at for being too loud. 

When she spoke, he tossed and turned followed by a sleepy mumble. It was no use, she’d just have to free him from the mirror to speak with him.

“Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.” She repeated.

Appearing in Lydia’s room, he floated in the air for a few seconds before plummeting to the ground with a loud thump.

“Ugh… fuck…” He grumbled, rubbing his face with his hands. 

He pushed himself off the ground and dusted himself off. It took him a few seconds to recollect his thoughts and come to the realization that he had been freed from the mirror. He stared at Lydia with a puzzled stare, unsure why she had decided to summon him at two in the morning.

“Lyds? I thought you were mad at me?” He said.

“I wanted to apologize.” She looked at the floor, too embarrassed to make eye contact with the ghost.

“I don’t care about apologies. I’m dead. I have an eternity to do whatever I want and being a whiny brat is at the bottom of the list.” He said.

“Jeeze, I was just trying to make things right.” She groaned.

“Alright, I’ll accept your apology, on one condition.” He challenged.  
  
“What?” She asked.

“Get me that thing of pills.” He pointed to the bag he had originally rummaged through.

Rolling her eyes, she retrieved the small plastic bag and tossed it to him. After examining it for a few seconds, he floated over to the bathroom adjacent to her bedroom.

“What are we doing in the bathroom?” She asked as she followed behind him.

Once they were both standing in front of the toilet, he lifted the seat.

“I’m not watching you piss-”

In one swift motion, he opened the bag and dumped the pills into the toilet, flushing the toilet’s contents. Mouth agape, Lydia looked up at Beetlejuice’s blank face.

“There. If I ever catch you doing these kinds of things again, you’ll get into so much shit.” He said triumphantly.

“Are you still going to tell Adam and Barbra?” She said, still a bit worried.

“Tell them about what?” He winked.

Lydia sighed with relief. The two walked back to Lydia’s room and Beetlejuice immediately noticed the razor on her vanity. Rushing towards it, he picked it up and buried it into his pocket.

“I don’t want to fight with you, babes. It hurts me to see you do these things to yourself. Just go lay on your bed, I need to talk to you.” He sighed.

Memories began to resurface. One of the most memorable being the time Beetlejuice had discovered Lydia’s cutting addiction. The two were similar in every way, except BJ’s desire of being alive once more and Lydia wishing for death. Thankfully, all of her suicide attempts were unsuccessful, thanks to him keeping an eye on her. There were a few instances where he’d thought she was gone for sure, but he had made it just in time.

Lydia laid back in her bed to hear him out and hopefully get some rest afterwards. Beetlejuice sat at the foot of her bed, trying to get out a few more words before she fell asleep.

“It’s unhealthy to bottle up your emotions, you can always talk to me. I don’t care what it is, I’m not going to judge you.” He comforted.

“Okay,” Lydia whispered, not interested in talking. She was still bitter about him flushing her pills, but it was for her own good. It wasn’t even the stress over how much it costs to buy Xanax, more so about him finding out that she had been doing drugs.

You know I care about you, right?” He asked. Lydia couldn’t remember the last time anyone told her that. Not wanting to make a scene, she held back her tears.

“Of course.” She said.

“Then that’s another one of the millions of reasons to stay alive. For me, Barbra, and Adam.” He said.

“I didn’t even cut myself, I was just looking at it.” She held out her arm and pulled up her sleeves as proof, but he just gently put her arm back down.

“I believe you. I just don’t want to look at your scars again, I don’t want to cry.” Lydia could tell he was tearing up. She quickly threw her arms around him and began to cry as well.

“Stop getting all mushy over me. I hate it when you cry.” He sniffled, rubbing his tears from his face. The two wept for a few seconds until Beetlejuice shook Lydia off of him and she laid back in her original spot in bed. Once he calmed down, he spoke again.

“And you were right. About the part about me doing bad stuff when I was young. I did hundreds of bad things. I don’t even want to tell you about them because it’ll just give your ideas. Still, it doesn’t justify anything. You should know better because you’re a lot smarter than I’ll ever be.” He sighed, looking over at her with a soft gaze. 

“I think you’re smart.” She insisted.

“Don’t throw me a pity party, Lyds. Can’t argue with facts. I feel like I let you down because I raised you to be all reckless or whatever.” He bowed his head down, his lips creasing into a frown. 

It was so out of character to see Beetlejuice all bummed out. He was always energetic and excited about going on adventures and scaring people. Now, he was slouching at the edge of her bed telling Lydia about how he raised her wrongly. It wasn’t his responsibility. Sure, there were tons of things he had done to impact her life. However, you can’t meet a fifteen-year-old and completely alter their entire personality and rewrite their morals. And it wasn’t like he was intending on manipulating her.

“But you’re not my parents, BJ, you’re my best friend.” She said, sitting up in her bed. Scooting herself closer to his body, she sympathetically placed a hand on his back and tried to comfort him to the best of her abilities.

“I always felt like I was more than just your best friend.” He murmured.

Lydia paused, unsure of how to respond. Beetlejuice came to the realization of what he just said and sheepishly looked back at her over his shoulder. They awkwardly stared at each other in the darkness for a few seconds until he opened his mouth to speak.

“I didn’t mean it like that… well, I uhh... I did but not entirely.” He stammered, unsure of how to clarify what he meant. As much as he wanted to be more in-depth with Lydia about how he felt, he didn’t want it to go this far.

“BJ?” She said.

“What? Just go to bed, I want to go home.” He grimaced, his voice suddenly becoming hostile.

“Oh, okay." She sighed. And just like that, he had vanished.


	3. The Neitherworld

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lydia had spent the day avoiding Beetlejuice, but felt a strong urge to check on him before she goes to bed.

The following day, Lydia chose not to interact with Beetlejuice in avoidance of dealing with her problems. Instead, she chose to spend some time with Adam and Barbra. It was rather uneventful, but she loved and cared about them. That was all that mattered to her. By the time that the evening had come around, she decided to check on Beetlejuice. It wouldn’t hurt just to talk for a few minutes, right?

Once she was sure that her parents were asleep, she grabbed a few small tealight candles and laid them on her vanity. After rummaging through her vanity’s drawers, she found a lighter and lit each candle. The small flames illuminated her dark bedroom, creating an eerie atmosphere. Just the way she liked it. Taking a deep breath to ground herself, she braced herself for the chant she’d used for many years to summon Beetlejuice.

“Though I know I should be wary, still I venture someplace scary,” She kept her voice low, not wanting to wake up her parents, “Ghostly haunting I turn loose. Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!”

As her words escaped her lips, Beetlejuice appeared in front of her, a bottle of beer in one of his hands. He was visibly drunk, judging by the way he swayed as he stood. Squinting his eyes, he tried to make out the dark figure before him that belonged to Lydia.

“Oh, hey Lyds.” He mumbled the second he recognized her. Taking a swig from the bottle, he stumbled over to her and swung an arm around her to support his body. 

“Are you okay?” She asked, trying to help him sit down in a chair so he wouldn’t fall over. He slouched down as much as he could, sticking out his gut.

“Better than ever, babes,” He said, “Why don’t you come back to my place? I want to hang out and have a couple of drinks.”

“I don’t think you can handle another drink.” She said.

“Don’t be such a baby, let’s go.” He insisted. Finishing off his beer, he got back up on his feet and stood next to the younger woman.

Lydia groaned in annoyance, chanting his name three times. The pair had appeared in the middle of Beetlejuice’s house. The messy interior always bothered Lydia, but she was too afraid of hurting his feelings to comment on it. Beetlejuice rushed to his liquor cabinet and opened it.

“Whaddya figure? Vodka? Or are you a red wine kind of girl.” He asked.

Lydia had come to the Neitherworld many times and drank with him hundreds of times, sometimes to the point where she’d pass out. It was surprising to hear that he remembered very little about her tastes. She didn’t have much of a preference to being with. She’d just drink whatever was available.

“Just whatever you want.” She said with a shrug.

“Vodka it is.” He retrieved one of the bottles and poured some into a shot glass. He set it down on the table and Lydia sat down in one of the chairs to drink. She took a quick sip, emptying the glass’s contents in seconds.

“That’s the spirit.” He said, grabbing her arm and chuckling. Taking the bottle, he began pouring her a second shot. Carefully, he placed it between her index finger and thumb.

“Thanks.” She murmured, not immediately drinking her shot. Putting her arm down, she stared at the glass’s contents, the alcohol almost mocking her. She didn’t want to give up after one shot. It wasn’t like she needed to impress Beetlejuice, they had been best friends for years. She just felt some kind of social pressure to fit in. It was unlike anything she had ever felt around him. Nervousness, maybe? But why on Earth would she feel that all of a sudden? There wasn’t anyone she knew that could make her feel as at ease as he could.

“I wanted to talk to you.” He said, a hint of awkward laughter lingering in his voice.

_ Not this bullshit again. _

Her heart had sunk into her stomach, bracing for an uncomfortable conversation.

“About what?” She asked, biting her bottom lip.

“No, ya know what? I changed my mind. I’d rather just watch you nail back shots.” He smirked, gesturing to the full shot glass with his slender finger.

It was so unlike him to back out of a conversation like that. Lydia could feel her chest start to tense up. What could he possibly be up to? Whatever it was, he was up to no good. She’d never once felt afraid of Beetlejuice, even the first time they met. His unpredictable actions never bothered her, until now.

“I’m up for that challenge.” She said, going along to see where the night was heading.

Lydia drank a few more shots and the effects of the alcohol were starting to get to her. Thankfully, her drunken haze relaxed her enough to forget about how strange Beetlejuice was acting.

“Has anyone ever told you how beautiful you are?” He asked.

Lydia raised an eyebrow, slightly taken back by the sudden change in conversation. She couldn’t recall a single time he had complimented her, other than it being sarcastic.

“Yeah, I guess. Sure.” She mumbled.

“I meant everything I said yesterday. I’m really worried about you. It’s probably bad for me to encourage you to drink… ugh… I’m such a horrible fucking person…” He hung his head low, burying his face in his hands.

“No you’re not, I think you’re great!” Lydia assured. She pulled his hands off his face, which revealed the sniffling, teary-eyed Beetlejuice.

“No! It’s my fault you’re like this.” He wailed, intertwining his fingers with her’s in an attempt to comfort himself.

There had never been a time where she had seen Beetlejuice break down crying, or at least to this extent. It wasn’t like he was an apathetic monster or anything, he just wasn’t a crybaby.

“Like what?” She asked.

“Sad.” His cries only got louder.

“You don’t make me sad.” She slid her chair closer to him, putting her arms around his neck so he was now crying into her shoulder.

“I’m so sorry you’re sad. I’m so fucking sorry.” He repeated.

It broke Lydia’s heart to hear these horrible things. Was this how he felt every day? This had to be what he so desperately wanted to talk to her about. It confused her why they couldn’t have been sober for this. Did he, the physical embodiment of chaos and impulse, just need to work up the courage? She doubted it.

“Shh…” She said, trying to calm him down.

He was already difficult enough to deal with when he was sober. Being drunk wasn’t helping either of them deal with the current situation at hand. After a few minutes of him crying, the sniffling had eventually stopped. All that remained was a damp spot on Lydia’s nightgown that had absorbed his tears.

“Lyddsss…” He whispered into her ear, sending a shiver down her spine.

“What?” She asked, her tone suddenly abrasive. He was acting like an overtired toddler, she couldn't help it.

“I, uh, I love you.” He giggled.

“I love you too, idiot.” She said with sarcasm, annoyed by his mood swings.

Beetlejuice pulled away, looking into her eyes. Shutting his eyes, he leaned in and pecked her on the lips. Lydia was surprised that she didn’t feel disgusted. It felt right, somehow. Leaning in, she returned the kiss. Due to her lack of experience, she wasn’t the best kisser and tried to follow his lead. Two cold hands were dropped to her thighs, one roaming upwards to her chest. Her hands released from his neck and began unbuttoning his shirt. Their lips detached as she gasped when one of his hands roughly groped one of her breasts. His mouth moved down to her face, peppering kisses in the crook of her neck. Beetlejuice’s hands released her chest and thigh, snaking around her hips to move her body onto his lap.

“Do you want to be back at your house?” He asked, his hands now firmly grasping her ass cheeks.

“No, it’s okay.” She said.

He lifted her by her bottom, rushing into his bedroom. Pushing her against the door to shut it behind him, he gently nibbled on her neck. Lydia undid his tie and slid off his shirt, revealing his hairy chest and beer belly. Picking her up again, he carried her to the bed and laid her down. He pinned her to the bed with his hands, kissing her lips once more. His kisses trailed down her body, ending at her stomach. He went to lift the bottom of her nightgown but stopped himself.

“Do you want me to stop?” He said, sounding hesitant.

“Never.” She purred.

He continued, lifting the fabric. He pressed his lips against her abdomen and slid down her underwear, spreading her legs. He ran his tongue between her crevice, causing soft moans to escape Lydia’s mouth. Pulling his face away, he inserted two fingers inside her.

“You’re so fucking tight.” He mumbled.

“Is that bad?” She asked.

“No- it’s all good, babes, just don’t mind me.” He said.

“Oh my god…” She moaned.

Lydia had masturbated before but had never had reached such a powerful orgasm. This was mostly because Beetlejuice was more experienced compared to her, but he had hundreds of years to learn.

Beetlejuice stopped, pulling his head away from her thighs. Lydia’s hands forcefully grasped fistfuls of his moss-green hair, shoving his face back into her crotch.

“Don’t stop.” She begged.

“I don’t think I can take it anymore, I’m so fucking tired.” He sighed.

She released him, allowing him to lay down beside her. Spooning her tiny frame, a hand on her thigh and the other being crushed by her torso. Lydia could feel his hardened member pressing against her ass.

“Don’t you want me to-“ She asked, but he had already interrupted her.

“I don’t need you to suck my dick. I’m tired.” He said.

“But… you’re…” She insisted.

“It’s fine.” He said.

Lydia stared at the wall as they talked before shutting her eyes and falling asleep.

  
  



End file.
